Herbs are the flavor of life for dialysis patients

Posted by Janell Patton on Sept. 14, 2018

Have
you have ever driven by Ozarks Dialysis Services (ODS) on Hwy. 60 in Monett and
wondered what the wooden planter was to the right of the front doors?

“It’s
a four-foot vertical herb garden for our dialysis patients and their families,”
said Susan Hodge, registered dietitian at Ozarks Dialysis Services in
Springfield and Monett. “We plant all types of fresh herbs in it in May that
will last through September or so.”

Hodge
learned about the benefits of building an herb garden from a co-worker who
attended a National Kidney Foundation Conference. Hodge loved the idea, and
decided to roll it out starting with the outpatient dialysis unit in
Springfield about four years ago, and eventually adding one to the Monett
location.

“We
want to provide our patients with the education and tools to make good choices
on what foods to eat and foods to avoid,” says Hodge. “Patients on dialysis
need to limit their salt intake, so herbs are the perfect choice for adding
flavor into their diets — and our little herb garden makes it easy for them to
do that.”

Hodge
provides new patients with an “introduction to herbs” packet, which lists all
the herbs available in the garden and recipes to help them get started. There
is also an informational sheet that instructs patients on how to harvest and
store the herbs. Currently, there are 11 herbs planted in the garden.

“The
favorite herb of our patients and the first one to be picked is cilantro
because it’s such a flavorful herb and you can do so much with it,” said Hodge.
“This year I cut back on planting mint and added more cilantro.”

Ozarks
Dialysis Services in Monett was recently awarded the prestigious five-star
rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for patient data and
quality health outcomes.

Hodge
admits the little herb gardens in Monett and Springfield were planted with a
lot of love because patients at ODS are treated like family, and she feels in
some little way, that helped to contribute to the five-star rating.

“Our
little gardens are about to come to an end for the season now, but we’ll be
ready to go next May with more fresh herbs to help our patients live their best
lives,” she added.